Chapter 89: Chapter 88: Unlucky Long Xiang

How shameless! 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Ling Xiao and Luo Tian, who were already fighting the Blast Flame Lion, heard his shout and nearly stumbled. Shangguan Yutong shot a speechless glance at the ferociously charging Long Xiang. The brief distraction almost cost her dearly, as the Blast Flame Lion’s razor-sharp claws nearly raked across her delicate face, putting her in mortal peril. In a flash, Ling Xiao lunged forward, thrusting his sword toward the beast’s soft underbelly and saving her from danger.

If his hair weren’t a mess of grass and his face weren’t blackened with soot, Long Xiang’s grand entrance might have been rather impressive. As it was, he looked more like a clown.

Luo Tian even spared a moment to give Teacher Shangguan a sympathetic look. ’If I were stuck with a boyfriend like that,’ he thought, ’life would be a living hell. Thank goodness it looks like she’s never accepted him!’

Strangely enough, whether it was because Long Xiang’s appearance was just that infuriating, or because the Blast Flame Lion was particularly vindictive, the moment he showed up, the furious beast roared and charged him. It spat Fireballs at Long Xiang relentlessly, immediately sending the Fourth-rank Great Sword Master scrambling and yelling, "Hurry up and help!"

To be fair, Long Xiang’s strength was actually quite impressive. Fourth-rank Great Sword Masters his age were rare. In fact, Long Xiang and Ling Xiao’s older brother, Lingzhi, had been students at the Imperial Academy around the same time, and Lingzhi was currently only a Tier Five Great Sword Master. And while a single rank represented a huge gap in power for a Great Sword Master, that didn’t diminish Long Xiang’s own abilities.

The main reason he was so detestable was his awful personality. Then again... that seemed to be a common failing among many so-called geniuses. They always felt superior, especially when faced with a "worthless" person of "status" like Ling Xiao. That sense of superiority became even more pronounced, which was why he deliberately ignored Ling Xiao’s achievements at the academy and his feat of rescuing Shangguan Yutong, insisting that Ling Xiao had just gotten incredibly lucky.

He hated Ling Xiao all the more because Ling Xiao’s good fortune had come at the expense of his own. ’How could a good-for-nothing like him suddenly earn everyone’s respect?’ he fumed. ’Meanwhile, I, a respected teacher at the Imperial Academy and a titled noble, am getting scornful looks from my students. This is absurd!’

For all his blustering, Long Xiang did have some real skill. With four people now surrounding the Blast Flame Lion, their situation had improved drastically compared to their initial struggle.

The Blast Flame Lion roared again and again. A Magical Beast’s senses were far sharper than a human’s, and it could feel the auras of many more people converging on their location. But the arrogant human before it was simply too infuriating. The beast’s claws were incredibly sharp, glinting coldly in the sun. Suddenly, ignoring the risk of being hit by the other three, it threw all its strength into a lunge at Long Xiang. Simultaneously, it spat out a Fireball twice the size of the previous ones, which erupted into a blazing inferno as it shot toward its target.

Long Xiang agilely twisted away, but the Blast Flame Lion’s sharp claws swept in horizontally from the right. At the same time, its tail, like a steel whip, lashed out at the other three. It was a masterfully executed combination; the beast was clearly determined to kill Long Xiang, no matter the cost.

In that instant, Long Xiang’s potential was unleashed. Tapping the ground with his feet, he launched himself more than a body-length into the air. A spark from the Fireball grazed his boot, and the smell of something scorching filled the air. The Magical Beast’s fire Magic was shockingly powerful; a lick of flame caught his trousers and began to burn its way up his leg. At the apex of his jump, Long Xiang’s upward momentum was spent. Below him, the Blast Flame Lion opened its cavernous maw. Its eyes turned a deep, eerie blue as it lunged up, its razor-sharp teeth aimed to tear the falling man apart.

CLANG!

It was the sharp sound of teeth clashing, a sound that sent a chill down the spine and grated on the ears.

Ling Xiao tapped the ground with his Fine Willow Sword. In that instant, the normally flexible blade became impossibly rigid. Using it to launch himself sideways through the air, Ling Xiao planted a solid kick on the falling Long Xiang’s backside, sending him flying a great distance.

The Blast Flame Lion’s jaws snapped shut on empty air!

At the same time, the Sword Qi from Luo Tian and Shangguan Yutong slammed into the Blast Flame Lion, tearing away a large patch of red fur as blood sprayed from its wounds!

"ROAR!" The Blast Flame Lion let out a pained cry, staggering back several steps. It shot one last furious roar at Shangguan Yutong and Luo Tian, then turned and dove into the tall grass, making a quick escape. By then, the sound of a large group of people approaching had become clearly audible.

Shangguan Yutong wiped the cold sweat from her forehead. Her hair was disheveled, and her chest was heaving. ’If that Blast Flame Lion hadn’t taken an immediate disliking to Long Xiang and focused all its attacks on him, it wouldn’t have been injured so easily,’ she thought. ’The four of us were no match for it!’

Luo Tian unceremoniously plopped onto the ground, muttering, "Gods, I actually fought a fourth-rank Blast Flame Lion for that long... I’m not dreaming, am I?"

Ling Xiao had used a skillful technique for his kick, but he hadn’t held back on the force. Now, as he glanced in the direction he’d sent Long Xiang flying, he heard a howl from the tall grass, followed by a string of frantic curses. A puff of smoke rose from the same spot.

When Long Xiang finally stood up, Shangguan Yutong’s face went crimson. She quickly turned her head away. Luo Tian and Ling Xiao couldn’t hold back their laughter. It turned out the Blast Flame Lion’s Fireball had burned Long Xiang’s clothes to shreds. The most destitute beggar in the Imperial Capital was probably better dressed than him right now.

"Can... can you give me some clothes...?" Long Xiang asked pitifully, looking at Luo Tian and Ling Xiao. His manhood dangled freely in the breeze, and he used one hand to cover himself. His body was covered in burns and scratches from the tough blades of grass. He was a truly pathetic sight.

Seeing that the large group was about to arrive, Shangguan Yutong’s heart softened. Although she disliked Long Xiang, he was still a colleague, and she couldn’t bear to see him utterly humiliated. She knew Luo Tian had a Space Ring and said, "Give him a set of clothes."

"Okay... Er, Teacher Long Xiang, just a second," Luo Tian mumbled, making a great show of rummaging around. "I have so much junk in my ring. I have to find them... now where did I put those clothes?"

A shout came from the approaching group. "Teacher Shangguan! Where are you?"

Yisha and Kaelin, who hadn’t gone far, called back, "Over here!"

If Long Xiang’s face weren’t already black with soot, it would have been purple with rage. "My dear student Luo Tian..." he said through clenched teeth. "Could you please hurry it up?"

"Ah, found them! So this is where they were!" Luo Tian said, and a set of Adventurer’s clothes appeared in his hand. Long Xiang, still clad in tatters, didn’t dare move, fearing the last of the rags would fall off. He softened his tone. "Heh heh, um, student Luo Tian, could you bring them over? How much for the clothes? I’ll pay you back as soon as we return!"

Luo Tian pursed his lips. Long Xiang hastily added, "I... I’ll pay you double!"

Luo Tian said calmly, "Teacher Long Xiang, you should know that I’m not a greedy person. So... let’s just say two hundred Gold Coins will be fine."

"Two hundred..." Long Xiang nearly fainted. ’This kid is a real shark,’ he thought. But he had no choice but to grit his teeth. "Fine! Two hundred! Now hurry up!"

Just then, Yisha and Kaelin returned from a short distance away. They caught sight of Long Xiang reaching for the clothes, with that... thing... dangling innocently below him. The two girls froze for a second before their faces flushed beet red. They both let out an indignant cry and spun around.

Long Xiang snatched the clothes and dove into the tall grass in a flash, ignoring the pain of the sharp blades scratching his skin. Far from feeling any gratitude toward Ling Xiao for the kick that had saved him, his heart burned with immense hatred.

’As a nobleman, I would rather die than suffer this kind of humiliation!’ Long Xiang thought stubbornly. ’If the Blast Flame Lion had just bitten me, Teacher Shangguan might have even fallen in love with me!’

’Damn that Ling Xiao, and damn that Luo Tian! Daring to charge me two hundred Gold Coins for a set of Adventurer’s clothes worth a few dozen at most! Just you wait, I’ll get my revenge!’ Long Xiang began tearing off the rags, wincing as the movement pulled at his wounds and cursing under his breath.

In moments, he was stark naked. Behind him, he could hear the clamor of the approaching crowd; it sounded like everyone on the training expedition had arrived. Suddenly, Long Xiang sensed something amiss in the air. As a Great Sword Master, he was acutely sensitive to his surroundings.

And so, he lifted his head and came face-to-face with the creature standing in the grass across from him... the Blast Flame Lion!

Its blue eyes even seemed to hold a hint of mockery.

"AHH!" Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, Long Xiang leaped up as if he’d gone mad, clutching the Adventurer’s clothes and bolting back toward Shangguan Yutong and the others.

Then came the most stunning scene of all. The more than one thousand students on the expedition all stared, dumbfounded, at the naked, soot-blackened man.

After a long moment, a timid voice rose from the crowd. "Isn’t that Teacher Long Xiang?"

At that moment, Long Xiang truly wished he could faint. He used the clothes in his hands to cover his vitals and said miserably, "The Blast Flame Lion... it’s right behind me."

Everyone looked behind Long Xiang, but the tall grass was empty. There was no sign of a lion.

Mocking glints appeared in many people’s eyes. Some of the bolder noble girls even glanced down at Long Xiang’s crotch; they had, after all, caught a glimpse a moment ago.

And so, a few whispers drifted to Long Xiang’s ears.

"Wow, I thought someone that tall would be more... well-endowed. I didn’t expect it to be so small."

"Yeah, I know! My boyfriend’s is bigger than that!"

"Mm, all show and no go..."